To express "how long" something had been happening, in Spanish you use:
Hacía + [length of time] + que + verb in El Pretérito Imperfecto
Have a look and listen to these examples:
This structure is also often followed by another sentence expressing an interruption with cuando. For example:
The order of the sentence can be modified as long as you follow this structure:
Verb in El Pretérito Imperfecto + desde hacía + length of time
For example:
See also:
- Using desde (hace) with El Presente instead of El Pretérito Perfecto to express since/for
- Using Hace + length of time + que + present tense to say how long one has done something
- Use Hace + length of time + que + El Indefinido to say how long ago something happened
- Use "hace" for "ago" with El Pretérito Indefinido
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Learn more about these related Spanish grammar topics
Examples and resources
Hacía tres años que trabajaba allí cuando lo despidieron.He had been working there for 3 years when he was fired.
Hacía dos semanas que no la veía cuando ella lo llamó de repente.He hadn't seen her for two weeks when she suddenly called him.